You may not yet have noticed… But I have. Living, as I do, in the mainstream of the food and nutrition newsflood, I have recently noticed Pecan producers’ messages to consumers creeping up on those of the competition: Pistachios… It may be a new ‘Cold War’…
The Nogalera Group is spearheading a producers’ push to replace
pistachios with pecans at ‘top-of-mind’ with consumers…
I’ve previously posted that I love the Pistachio growers’ consumer awareness campaign over the past couple of years. You know – the one featuring the snooty-sounding light-footed elephant who winks when he says he now prefers pistachios to peanuts.
But the elephant now has competition. The Pecan growers are mounting a campaign to make North Americans just as aware of their product – hopefully, more so.
Hold on to your hat!
“Move aside pistachio, this season is all about butter-pecan ice-cream, Pecan Pie, pecan Dukkah, cinnamon Mashuga, and pecan-frosted German Chocolate Cake,” The Guardian‘s latest hot or not’ list shouts.
And The Guardian also notes (or at least opines…) that the Pistachio ‘wave’ is naturally subsiding… “The Dubai chocolate bubble has popped, with few lurid green pistachio products tasting anything like an actual pistachio.” Which may indicate that the Dubai Chocolate ‘thing’ (perhaps not even a fad, let alone a trend) did the pistachio’s image more harm than good in the end. But I digress…
Leading the way
A major pecan purveyor, the Nogalera Group, headquartered in Guadalajara, México, is leading the way, pushing head-to-head – or should I say, shell-to-shell – comparisons of pecans vs pistachios.
“With more antioxidants, fibre, and heart-healthy fats, pecans offer more than just great taste,” their Instagram post declares. “A smarter snack, naturally.”
What next?
Naturally, one would expect the Pistachio people to strike back. But there’s been no indication as yet that they’ve taken Nogalera’s ‘bait’.
Another tack…
But there’s another angle to the emerging Nut War. Objective observers say that current wisdom holds Pecan and Pistachios are equally good for you – just in slightly different ways.
“When consumed together, pecans and pistachios work synergistically to reduce LDL cholesterol, maintain healthy HDL cholesterol, and improve the overall function and elasticity of blood vessels,” Krishival Nuts of Mumbai, India, explains on its webpage dedicated to promoting the P + P ‘combo’. “Regular intake of this nut combination can also help modulate inflammatory responses.”
My take
If they ask me – and I’m confident they won’t – the pistachio people could do much worse than bring back their beloved animated elephant to politely denigrate pecans the same way he did peanuts.
“Pecans… They’re so ‘1965 Christmas Mixed Nuts Assortment’!” he might well taunt. Or maybe not…
But I truly think it may be a better choice, in the long run, for Pecans and Pistachios to join forces un-der the heart-and-metabolism-health umbrella. They’re perfectly-suited nutritional dance partners!
Meanwhile, we’ll keep our eyes peeled for future developments in the impending Cold War…
~ Maggie J.